Among the things I learned this week:
* Structure and historical importance of whaling businesses. (Courtesy: The Economist)
* Espresso making techniques and factors. (Courtesy: Toby’s Estate Coffee’s Espresso Foundations Class)
* Bloomberg’s With All Due Respect‘s theme song was produced by Rza. (Courtesy: With All Due Respect’s interview with Rza)
* The history of the KKK’s hood and white uniform. (Courtesy: New Republic)
* Opera flasks or Flacon d’eau de Melisse. (Courtesy: eBay)
Among the things I learned this week:
* “On average, citizens in the European Union made 189 electronic transactions a year in 2013, the most recent figures available. In Greece, the average was just 17 per citizen.” (Courtesy: NYT; the article has many interesting aspects)
* About six percent of Syrian refugees contacted by the United Nations in Jordan and Lebanon during the last half of November were interested in relocating to Canada. (Courtesy: NYT)
* Canada, and presumably other countries, have privatized refugee resettlement by requiring sponsors and minimum capital reserves. (Courtesy: NYT).
* The United Nations coordinates relocation with refugees, at least in part, via text. (Courtesy: Globe and Mail)
* B-52 bombers used to have ashtrays. (Courtesy: NYT)
* Werner Kelmperer and John Banner appeared in a show together before their roles as Colonel Klink and Sergeant Shultz in Hogan’s Heroes. (Courtesy: Alfred Hitchock Presents)
* Paintings from before the 18th c. usually did not have titles. (Courtesy: New Republic)
Among the things I learned this week:
* In the late 19th century, women wore posy holders. There was a lot of variety, but the ornate ones are beautiful and many had ring attachments so they could dangle. (Courtesy: Smithsonian Gardens)
* The joy and amusement of watching people who have never played Pac-Man before trumps my desire to play. (Courtesy: Smithsonian American Art Museum)
* GMail searches don’t auto-stem. I’m shocked and appalled (that I just learned this). (Courtesy: Personal experience)
* 1982 Bordeaux wines are historically important for the evolution of the wine market. (Courtesy: The New York Times)
* General Ulysses S. Grant’s relationship with Jews, including General Orders No. 11, which expelled them from areas under his control during the Civil War, and his, later, assistance in eastern Europe. (Courtesy: The New Republic)
* Pyongyang’s subway system is more extensive than I expected, although it does not appear to be expanding. Plus, it has significance in the context of world subway systems (other sites with good information or photos: Unofficial Pyongyang Metro). (Courtesy: North Korean Economy Watch)